Provided by: libnss3-tools_3.98-0ubuntu0.22.04.2_amd64 
NAME
signtool - Digitally sign objects and files.
SYNOPSIS
signtool [[-b basename]] [[-c Compression Level]] [[-d cert-dir]] [[-e extension]] [[-f filename]]
[[-i installer script]] [[-h]] [[-H]] [[-v]] [[-w]] [[-G nickname]] [[-J]] [[-j directory]]
[-k keyName] [[--keysize | -s size]] [[-l]] [[-L]] [[-M]] [[-m metafile]] [[--norecurse]] [[-O]]
[[-o]] [[--outfile]] [[-p password]] [[-t|--token tokenname]] [[-z]] [[-X]] [[-x name]]
[[--verbose value]] [[--leavearc]] [[-Z jarfile]] [directory-tree] [archive]
STATUS
This documentation is still work in progress. Please contribute to the initial review in Mozilla NSS bug
836477[1]
DESCRIPTION
The Signing Tool, signtool, creates digital signatures and uses a Java Archive (JAR) file to associate
the signatures with files in a directory. Electronic software distribution over any network involves
potential security problems. To help address some of these problems, you can associate digital signatures
with the files in a JAR archive. Digital signatures allow SSL-enabled clients to perform two important
operations:
* Confirm the identity of the individual, company, or other entity whose digital signature is associated
with the files
* Check whether the files have been tampered with since being signed
If you have a signing certificate, you can use Netscape Signing Tool to digitally sign files and package
them as a JAR file. An object-signing certificate is a special kind of certificate that allows you to
associate your digital signature with one or more files.
An individual file can potentially be signed with multiple digital signatures. For example, a commercial
software developer might sign the files that constitute a software product to prove that the files are
indeed from a particular company. A network administrator manager might sign the same files with an
additional digital signature based on a company-generated certificate to indicate that the product is
approved for use within the company.
The significance of a digital signature is comparable to the significance of a handwritten signature.
Once you have signed a file, it is difficult to claim later that you didn't sign it. In some situations,
a digital signature may be considered as legally binding as a handwritten signature. Therefore, you
should take great care to ensure that you can stand behind any file you sign and distribute.
For example, if you are a software developer, you should test your code to make sure it is virus-free
before signing it. Similarly, if you are a network administrator, you should make sure, before signing
any code, that it comes from a reliable source and will run correctly with the software installed on the
machines to which you are distributing it.
Before you can use Netscape Signing Tool to sign files, you must have an object-signing certificate,
which is a special certificate whose associated private key is used to create digital signatures. For
testing purposes only, you can create an object-signing certificate with Netscape Signing Tool 1.3. When
testing is finished and you are ready to disitribute your software, you should obtain an object-signing
certificate from one of two kinds of sources:
* An independent certificate authority (CA) that authenticates your identity and charges you a fee. You
typically get a certificate from an independent CA if you want to sign software that will be distributed
over the Internet.
* CA server software running on your corporate intranet or extranet. Netscape Certificate Management
System provides a complete management solution for creating, deploying, and managing certificates,
including CAs that issue object-signing certificates.
You must also have a certificate for the CA that issues your signing certificate before you can sign
files. If the certificate authority's certificate isn't already installed in your copy of Communicator,
you typically install it by clicking the appropriate link on the certificate authority's web site, for
example on the page from which you initiated enrollment for your signing certificate. This is the case
for some test certificates, as well as certificates issued by Netscape Certificate Management System: you
must download the the CA certificate in addition to obtaining your own signing certificate. CA
certificates for several certificate authorities are preinstalled in the Communicator certificate
database.
When you receive an object-signing certificate for your own use, it is automatically installed in your
copy of the Communicator client software. Communicator supports the public-key cryptography standard
known as PKCS #12, which governs key portability. You can, for example, move an object-signing
certificate and its associated private key from one computer to another on a credit-card-sized device
called a smart card.
OPTIONS
-b basename
Specifies the base filename for the .rsa and .sf files in the META-INF directory to conform with the
JAR format. For example, -b signatures causes the files to be named signatures.rsa and signatures.sf.
The default is signtool.
-c#
Specifies the compression level for the -J or -Z option. The symbol # represents a number from 0 to
9, where 0 means no compression and 9 means maximum compression. The higher the level of compression,
the smaller the output but the longer the operation takes. If the -c# option is not used with either
the -J or the -Z option, the default compression value used by both the -J and -Z options is 6.
-d certdir
Specifies your certificate database directory; that is, the directory in which you placed your
key3.db and cert7.db files. To specify the current directory, use "-d." (including the period). The
Unix version of signtool assumes ~/.netscape unless told otherwise. The NT version of signtool always
requires the use of the -d option to specify where the database files are located.
-e extension
Tells signtool to sign only files with the given extension; for example, use -e".class" to sign only
Java class files. Note that with Netscape Signing Tool version 1.1 and later this option can appear
multiple times on one command line, making it possible to specify multiple file types or classes to
include.
-f commandfile
Specifies a text file containing Netscape Signing Tool options and arguments in keyword=value format.
All options and arguments can be expressed through this file. For more information about the syntax
used with this file, see "Tips and Techniques".
-G nickname
Generates a new private-public key pair and corresponding object-signing certificate with the given
nickname. The newly generated keys and certificate are installed into the key and certificate
databases in the directory specified by the -d option. With the NT version of Netscape Signing Tool,
you must use the -d option with the -G option. With the Unix version of Netscape Signing Tool,
omitting the -d option causes the tool to install the keys and certificate in the Communicator key
and certificate databases. If you are installing the keys and certificate in the Communicator
databases, you must exit Communicator before using this option; otherwise, you risk corrupting the
databases. In all cases, the certificate is also output to a file named x509.cacert, which has the
MIME-type application/x-x509-ca-cert. Unlike certificates normally used to sign finished code to be
distributed over a network, a test certificate created with -G is not signed by a recognized
certificate authority. Instead, it is self-signed. In addition, a single test signing certificate
functions as both an object-signing certificate and a CA. When you are using it to sign objects, it
behaves like an object-signing certificate. When it is imported into browser software such as
Communicator, it behaves like an object-signing CA and cannot be used to sign objects. The -G option
is available in Netscape Signing Tool 1.0 and later versions only. By default, it produces only RSA
certificates with 1024-byte keys in the internal token. However, you can use the -s option specify
the required key size and the -t option to specify the token.
-i scriptname
Specifies the name of an installer script for SmartUpdate. This script installs files from the JAR
archive in the local system after SmartUpdate has validated the digital signature. For more details,
see the description of -m that follows. The -i option provides a straightforward way to provide this
information if you don't need to specify any metadata other than an installer script.
-J
Signs a directory of HTML files containing JavaScript and creates as many archive files as are
specified in the HTML tags. Even if signtool creates more than one archive file, you need to supply
the key database password only once. The -J option is available only in Netscape Signing Tool 1.0 and
later versions. The -J option cannot be used at the same time as the -Z option. If the -c# option is
not used with the -J option, the default compression value is 6. Note that versions 1.1 and later of
Netscape Signing Tool correctly recognizes the CODEBASE attribute, allows paths to be expressed for
the CLASS and SRC attributes instead of filenames only, processes LINK tags and parses HTML
correctly, and offers clearer error messages.
-j directory
Specifies a special JavaScript directory. This option causes the specified directory to be signed and
tags its entries as inline JavaScript. This special type of entry does not have to appear in the JAR
file itself. Instead, it is located in the HTML page containing the inline scripts. When you use
signtool -v, these entries are displayed with the string NOT PRESENT.
-k key ... directory
Specifies the nickname (key) of the certificate you want to sign with and signs the files in the
specified directory. The directory to sign is always specified as the last command-line argument.
Thus, it is possible to write signtool -k MyCert -d . signdir You may have trouble if the nickname
contains a single quotation mark. To avoid problems, escape the quotation mark using the escape
conventions for your platform. It's also possible to use the -k option without signing any files or
specifying a directory. For example, you can use it with the -l option to get detailed information
about a particular signing certificate.
-l
Lists signing certificates, including issuing CAs. If any of your certificates are expired or
invalid, the list will so specify. This option can be used with the -k option to list detailed
information about a particular signing certificate. The -l option is available in Netscape Signing
Tool 1.0 and later versions only.
-L
Lists the certificates in your database. An asterisk appears to the left of the nickname for any
certificate that can be used to sign objects with signtool.
--leavearc
Retains the temporary .arc (archive) directories that the -J option creates. These directories are
automatically erased by default. Retaining the temporary directories can be an aid to debugging.
-m metafile
Specifies the name of a metadata control file. Metadata is signed information attached either to the
JAR archive itself or to files within the archive. This metadata can be any ASCII string, but is used
mainly for specifying an installer script. The metadata file contains one entry per line, each with
three fields: field #1: file specification, or + if you want to specify global metadata (that is,
metadata about the JAR archive itself or all entries in the archive) field #2: the name of the data
you are specifying; for example: Install-Script field #3: data corresponding to the name in field #2
For example, the -i option uses the equivalent of this line: + Install-Script: script.js This example
associates a MIME type with a file: movie.qt MIME-Type: video/quicktime For information about the way
installer script information appears in the manifest file for a JAR archive, see The JAR Format on
Netscape DevEdge.
-M
Lists the PKCS #11 modules available to signtool, including smart cards. The -M option is available
in Netscape Signing Tool 1.0 and later versions only. For information on using Netscape Signing Tool
with smart cards, see "Using Netscape Signing Tool with Smart Cards". For information on using the -M
option to verify FIPS-140-1 validated mode, see "Netscape Signing Tool and FIPS-140-1".
--norecurse
Blocks recursion into subdirectories when signing a directory's contents or when parsing HTML.
-o
Optimizes the archive for size. Use this only if you are signing very large archives containing
hundreds of files. This option makes the manifest files (required by the JAR format) considerably
smaller, but they contain slightly less information.
--outfile outputfile
Specifies a file to receive redirected output from Netscape Signing Tool.
-p password
Specifies a password for the private-key database. Note that the password entered on the command line
is displayed as plain text.
-s keysize
Specifies the size of the key for generated certificate. Use the -M option to find out what tokens
are available. The -s option can be used with the -G option only.
-t token
Specifies which available token should generate the key and receive the certificate. Use the -M
option to find out what tokens are available. The -t option can be used with the -G option only.
-v archive
Displays the contents of an archive and verifies the cryptographic integrity of the digital
signatures it contains and the files with which they are associated. This includes checking that the
certificate for the issuer of the object-signing certificate is listed in the certificate database,
that the CA's digital signature on the object-signing certificate is valid, that the relevant
certificates have not expired, and so on.
--verbosity value
Sets the quantity of information Netscape Signing Tool generates in operation. A value of 0 (zero) is
the default and gives full information. A value of -1 suppresses most messages, but not error
messages.
-w archive
Displays the names of signers of any files in the archive.
-x directory
Excludes the specified directory from signing. Note that with Netscape Signing Tool version 1.1 and
later this option can appear multiple times on one command line, making it possible to specify
several particular directories to exclude.
-z
Tells signtool not to store the signing time in the digital signature. This option is useful if you
want the expiration date of the signature checked against the current date and time rather than the
time the files were signed.
-Z jarfile
Creates a JAR file with the specified name. You must specify this option if you want signtool to
create the JAR file; it does not do so automatically. If you don't specify -Z, you must use an
external ZIP tool to create the JAR file. The -Z option cannot be used at the same time as the -J
option. If the -c# option is not used with the -Z option, the default compression value is 6.
THE COMMAND FILE FORMAT
Entries in a Netscape Signing Tool command file have this general format: keyword=value Everything before
the = sign on a single line is a keyword, and everything from the = sign to the end of line is a value.
The value may include = signs; only the first = sign on a line is interpreted. Blank lines are ignored,
but white space on a line with keywords and values is assumed to be part of the keyword (if it comes
before the equal sign) or part of the value (if it comes after the first equal sign). Keywords are case
insensitive, values are generally case sensitive. Since the = sign and newline delimit the value, it
should not be quoted.
Subsection
basename
Same as -b option.
compression
Same as -c option.
certdir
Same as -d option.
extension
Same as -e option.
generate
Same as -G option.
installscript
Same as -i option.
javascriptdir
Same as -j option.
htmldir
Same as -J option.
certname
Nickname of certificate, as with -k and -l -k options.
signdir
The directory to be signed, as with -k option.
list
Same as -l option. Value is ignored, but = sign must be present.
listall
Same as -L option. Value is ignored, but = sign must be present.
metafile
Same as -m option.
modules
Same as -M option. Value is ignored, but = sign must be present.
optimize
Same as -o option. Value is ignored, but = sign must be present.
password
Same as -p option.
keysize
Same as -s option.
token
Same as -t option.
verify
Same as -v option.
who
Same as -w option.
exclude
Same as -x option.
notime
Same as -z option. value is ignored, but = sign must be present.
jarfile
Same as -Z option.
outfile
Name of a file to which output and error messages will be redirected. This option has no command-line
equivalent.
EXTENDED EXAMPLES
The following example will do this and that
Listing Available Signing Certificates
You use the -L option to list the nicknames for all available certificates and check which ones are
signing certificates.
signtool -L
using certificate directory: /u/jsmith/.netscape
S Certificates
- ------------
BBN Certificate Services CA Root 1
IBM World Registry CA
VeriSign Class 1 CA - Individual Subscriber - VeriSign, Inc.
GTE CyberTrust Root CA
Uptime Group Plc. Class 4 CA
* Verisign Object Signing Cert
Integrion CA
GTE CyberTrust Secure Server CA
AT&T Directory Services
* test object signing cert
Uptime Group Plc. Class 1 CA
VeriSign Class 1 Primary CA
- ------------
Certificates that can be used to sign objects have *'s to their left.
Two signing certificates are displayed: Verisign Object Signing Cert and test object signing cert.
You use the -l option to get a list of signing certificates only, including the signing CA for each.
signtool -l
using certificate directory: /u/jsmith/.netscape
Object signing certificates
---------------------------------------
Verisign Object Signing Cert
Issued by: VeriSign, Inc. - Verisign, Inc.
Expires: Tue May 19, 1998
test object signing cert
Issued by: test object signing cert (Signtool 1.0 Testing
Certificate (960187691))
Expires: Sun May 17, 1998
---------------------------------------
For a list including CAs, use the -L option.
Signing a File
1. Create an empty directory.
mkdir signdir
2. Put some file into it.
echo boo > signdir/test.f
3. Specify the name of your object-signing certificate and sign the directory.
signtool -k MySignCert -Z testjar.jar signdir
using key "MySignCert"
using certificate directory: /u/jsmith/.netscape
Generating signdir/META-INF/manifest.mf file..
--> test.f
adding signdir/test.f to testjar.jar
Generating signtool.sf file..
Enter Password or Pin for "Communicator Certificate DB":
adding signdir/META-INF/manifest.mf to testjar.jar
adding signdir/META-INF/signtool.sf to testjar.jar
adding signdir/META-INF/signtool.rsa to testjar.jar
tree "signdir" signed successfully
4. Test the archive you just created.
signtool -v testjar.jar
using certificate directory: /u/jsmith/.netscape
archive "testjar.jar" has passed crypto verification.
status path
------------ -------------------
verified test.f
Using Netscape Signing Tool with a ZIP Utility
To use Netscape Signing Tool with a ZIP utility, you must have the utility in your path environment
variable. You should use the zip.exe utility rather than pkzip.exe, which cannot handle long filenames.
You can use a ZIP utility instead of the -Z option to package a signed archive into a JAR file after you
have signed it:
cd signdir
zip -r ../myjar.jar *
adding: META-INF/ (stored 0%)
adding: META-INF/manifest.mf (deflated 15%)
adding: META-INF/signtool.sf (deflated 28%)
adding: META-INF/signtool.rsa (stored 0%)
adding: text.txt (stored 0%)
Generating the Keys and Certificate
The signtool option -G generates a new public-private key pair and certificate. It takes the nickname of
the new certificate as an argument. The newly generated keys and certificate are installed into the key
and certificate databases in the directory specified by the -d option. With the NT version of Netscape
Signing Tool, you must use the -d option with the -G option. With the Unix version of Netscape Signing
Tool, omitting the -d option causes the tool to install the keys and certificate in the Communicator key
and certificate databases. In all cases, the certificate is also output to a file named x509.cacert,
which has the MIME-type application/x-x509-ca-cert.
Certificates contain standard information about the entity they identify, such as the common name and
organization name. Netscape Signing Tool prompts you for this information when you run the command with
the -G option. However, all of the requested fields are optional for test certificates. If you do not
enter a common name, the tool provides a default name. In the following example, the user input is in
boldface:
signtool -G MyTestCert
using certificate directory: /u/someuser/.netscape
Enter certificate information. All fields are optional. Acceptable
characters are numbers, letters, spaces, and apostrophes.
certificate common name: Test Object Signing Certificate
organization: Netscape Communications Corp.
organization unit: Server Products Division
state or province: California
country (must be exactly 2 characters): US
username: someuser
email address: someuser@netscape.com
Enter Password or Pin for "Communicator Certificate DB": [Password will not echo]
generated public/private key pair
certificate request generated
certificate has been signed
certificate "MyTestCert" added to database
Exported certificate to x509.raw and x509.cacert.
The certificate information is read from standard input. Therefore, the information can be read from a
file using the redirection operator (<) in some operating systems. To create a file for this purpose,
enter each of the seven input fields, in order, on a separate line. Make sure there is a newline
character at the end of the last line. Then run signtool with standard input redirected from your file as
follows:
signtool -G MyTestCert inputfile
The prompts show up on the screen, but the responses will be automatically read from the file. The
password will still be read from the console unless you use the -p option to give the password on the
command line.
Using the -M Option to List Smart Cards
You can use the -M option to list the PKCS #11 modules, including smart cards, that are available to
signtool:
signtool -d "c:\netscape\users\jsmith" -M
using certificate directory: c:\netscape\users\username
Listing of PKCS11 modules
-----------------------------------------------
1. Netscape Internal PKCS #11 Module
(this module is internally loaded)
slots: 2 slots attached
status: loaded
slot: Communicator Internal Cryptographic Services Version 4.0
token: Communicator Generic Crypto Svcs
slot: Communicator User Private Key and Certificate Services
token: Communicator Certificate DB
2. CryptOS
(this is an external module)
DLL name: core32
slots: 1 slots attached
status: loaded
slot: Litronic 210
token:
-----------------------------------------------
Using Netscape Signing Tool and a Smart Card to Sign Files
The signtool command normally takes an argument of the -k option to specify a signing certificate. To
sign with a smart card, you supply only the fully qualified name of the certificate.
To see fully qualified certificate names when you run Communicator, click the Security button in
Navigator, then click Yours under Certificates in the left frame. Fully qualified names are of the format
smart card:certificate, for example "MyCard:My Signing Cert". You use this name with the -k argument as
follows:
signtool -k "MyCard:My Signing Cert" directory
Verifying FIPS Mode
Use the -M option to verify that you are using the FIPS-140-1 module.
signtool -d "c:\netscape\users\jsmith" -M
using certificate directory: c:\netscape\users\jsmith
Listing of PKCS11 modules
-----------------------------------------------
1. Netscape Internal PKCS #11 Module
(this module is internally loaded)
slots: 2 slots attached
status: loaded
slot: Communicator Internal Cryptographic Services Version 4.0
token: Communicator Generic Crypto Svcs
slot: Communicator User Private Key and Certificate Services
token: Communicator Certificate DB
-----------------------------------------------
This Unix example shows that Netscape Signing Tool is using a FIPS-140-1 module:
signtool -d "c:\netscape\users\jsmith" -M
using certificate directory: c:\netscape\users\jsmith
Enter Password or Pin for "Communicator Certificate DB": [password will not echo]
Listing of PKCS11 modules
-----------------------------------------------
1. Netscape Internal FIPS PKCS #11 Module
(this module is internally loaded)
slots: 1 slots attached
status: loaded
slot: Netscape Internal FIPS-140-1 Cryptographic Services
token: Communicator Certificate DB
-----------------------------------------------
SEE ALSO
signver (1)
The NSS wiki has information on the new database design and how to configure applications to use it.
• https://wiki.mozilla.org/NSS_Shared_DB_Howto
• https://wiki.mozilla.org/NSS_Shared_DB
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
For information about NSS and other tools related to NSS (like JSS), check out the NSS project wiki at
http://www.mozilla.org/projects/security/pki/nss/. The NSS site relates directly to NSS code changes and
releases.
Mailing lists: https://lists.mozilla.org/listinfo/dev-tech-crypto
IRC: Freenode at #dogtag-pki
AUTHORS
The NSS tools were written and maintained by developers with Netscape, Red Hat, Sun, Oracle, Mozilla, and
Google.
Authors: Elio Maldonado <emaldona@redhat.com>, Deon Lackey <dlackey@redhat.com>.
LICENSE
Licensed under the Mozilla Public License, v. 2.0. If a copy of the MPL was not distributed with this
file, You can obtain one at http://mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/.
NOTES
1. Mozilla NSS bug 836477
https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=836477
nss-tools 19 May 2021 SIGNTOOL(1)